"I was shooting Hansel And Gretel in Berlin and it was very secretive," he recalled.

"They didn't want it getting out. They didn't trust me enough to send it over so they literally flew somebody out.

He added: "I got a knock on my door at midnight and this script slid in and they just said, 'Call me when you're done with it. You've got about two hours'."

In this next chapter, director Tony Gilroy, taking over from Paul Greengrass, has pulled back the curtain to expose a darker layer of intrigue and audiences will discover there are actually a variety of intelligence programmes of which Bourne was only part of one.

Jeremy explained: "This film just expands on the original concept. It's running parallel with the story of The Bourne Ultimatum, that's happening at the same time, so it really opened up the parameters and the perspective on what that universe is."

The Bourne Legacy, which also stars Rachel Weisz and Edward Norton, is released on August 13.